Boy, 14, arrested over hoax bomb threat to school

A teenager has been arrested on suspicion of making a copycat hoax bomb threat.

West Midlands Police said the 14-year-old boy was detained by officers after a call made to a school in the Great Barr area of Birmingham on Wednesday.

The call was traced to a nearby phone box.

CCTV inquiries then identified the teenager – who is not being linked to other hoax calls – as a suspect.

The UK-wide Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) said such incidents caused massive disruption and that reporting of such incidents could encourage ‘copycat’ offending.

There has been a series of hoaxes in some areas of the country in recent weeks, including the West Midlands, which have led to school closures.

Inspector Noeleen Murrin, from Birmingham police, said: ‘These kinds of offences are not only a drain on police, council and school resources but they also waste the time of pupils who should be receiving their education.’

The Department for Education said it was aware of several incidents, was monitoring the situation and also urged restraint in the reporting of threats made against schools.

The department said in a statement: ‘Nothing is more important than the safety of our children.

‘Where any school is subject to such a threat, real or otherwise, there are clear emergency arrangements in place that have been agreed with police and the local authority.’

The maximum sentence for communicating a bomb hoax is seven years in prison.